THIS GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED! Thank you for participating! Winners will be announced shortly!
Okay readers: It’s 39 days until Ashes of the Tyrant can land in your hot little hands. That means….giveaway time!
Is she standing on a pyramid? Yes she is.
What’s it about?
After the events of Fire in the Blood, Farideh, Mehen, Havilar and Brin head to Djerad Thymar with Kepeshkmolik Dumuzi at the behest of Mehen’s aunt, the Verthisathurgiesh matriarch, Anala. But what they think will be a quick stopover turns into something far more dangerous when Anala’s son turns up dead in the catacombs along with a dozen other young dragonborn.
Meanwhile Dahl Peredur is in Harrowdale, trying to find a way out of his deal with Lorcan, when a certain Zhentarim agent tracks him down, looking for lost information about an ancient site, The Master’s Library. As much as he wants to keep his Harper life separate from his family, a lost Zhentarim outpost and a family secret mean he won’t get that chance.
That’s…not a bad summary!
I know, right? I’ve been practicing since last year.
I would read that.
You can start with this sample chapter if you like.
I still have to wait 39 days for the book though. Why are you even bringing this up??I told you: it’s giveaway time! You know what to do!
1 Make a comment on this post. You are going to have to leave an email address to do this, but that’s good, because if you win, I will have to have a way to contact you! It must be on this post at slushlush.com, or I won’t count it.
2 In your comment, tell me your favorite nonhuman fantasy race/species. Since Ashes of the Tyrant is where the dragonborn shine, let’s celebrate those peoples who aren’t just like us. They MUST be fictional, but you can draw from books, movies, comics, or TV, and they need to be nonhuman. There are lots of cool human cultures in lots of books, but that’s not this contest. Feel free to include links—we all love being introduced to new stories.
3 From the pool of comments, I will randomly select a winner who will get a signed copy of Ashes of the Tyrant Because at least 100 people have entered, I will give one winner signed copies of the entire Brimstone Angels Saga, and three winners copies of Ashes of the Tyrant!
If you’ve followed along with these giveaways before, you know that’s not all.
- If we get to 300, I’ll add in something special:
Please use responsibly
That’s right! I made two! The scourge pendant auction went so well, I thought I’d offer up another. One winner gets the scourge pendant replica and a signed copy of Ashes of the Tyrant, two people get full series, and three people get signed copies of Ashes of the Tyrant.
- One more level: You guys get this up to 500 entries and I’ll do all of the above, plus the annotated Ashes of the Tyrant. AND I’ll remember to take pictures of some pages. I loved doing this for Fire in the Blood, but I definitely underestimated how much time it took. Show me you really want it, and I’ll make time to do it again.
The contest runs through December 22. I will draw names and announce winners as soon as I can after that. You all should be aware I’m expecting a baby and due December 15th, so there’s a chance you might have to be a little patient as I might literally be in labor when the contest ends. Only one entry per person, but please pressgang your friends. May the odds be ever in your favor, etc.,etc.
I’m panicking! I literally can only think of elves! Everyone will laugh at me!
Elves count! If you love ’em, you love em.
I already have copies of those books.
The nice thing about getting a signed copy of a book you already have is that it gives you a ready-made gift for someone else. Got a DM who’s gone above and beyond? Got a friend you know who would love some Realms novels but doesn’t know where to start? Got a Secret Santa coming up? Ta-da!
Get commenting! (And come back to check out other answers!)
Few additional questions:
If I buy a copy of the book through the esigning and I win, what happens?
You can choose to cancel your order, or have two books and be the coolest kid on the block.
If I won your last contest, am I ineligible?
Nope. Different book, different contest. The only thing that makes you ineligible to win is being me or a member of my immediate family. Because, come on. Especially, you, sister who is two books behind.
I am not from the US. Can I enter?
Yes! But be aware that I may need to choose a slower form of shipping to accommodate you in a way I can afford.
Love the series keep up the good work! Hopefully we reach the annotated edition milestone
I love the High Elves from the Warhammer Fantasy setting. Haughty, proud, and defiant in spite of the surmounting odds and the inevitable end of their ancient race. Also, the Sundering that they fought with their Dark Elf cousins is very epic.
I really love the Deep Imaskari. There is such a rich vein of narrative there. I very much like the idea of a race of humanoids that have chosen to live separately from the rest of the world, but only for a time. I like the questions it brings about: why would they leave? what is their day-to-day society like? How would you play this character? The questions in D&D are always where my campaigns start.
Thanks for reading and congrats on the little one! Best wishes.
I love the Nac Mac Feegle from the Terry Pratchett’s discworld novels. They are a sort of fairy folk that is at once a throw-back to the old myths of mischievous fey and a perversion of our expectations of fairies, since they’re sort of like tiny Scottish soccer hooligans. So, obviously, they’re hilarious. For those that haven’t read The Wee Free Men, do it now! CRIVENS!
Congrats on the upcoming release! I started reading Brimstone Angels with _The Adversary_, and am now doubling back to check out the first two.
As for your specific question, I’m a big fan of orcs. I adore when a writer writes them well, and gives them a strong sense of character above and beyond the ‘ravening monstrous horde’ stereotype. I feel like there’s a lot of potential there, though it’s hard to pick one particular universe’s interpretation of orcs as my favorite.
In the D&D multiverse specifically, I’d also like to see something done with hobgoblins. They intrigue me, but there’s very little about them, relatively speaking.
I hope I’m not too late. I seriously just picked up your first book in this series last week and am now on Fire in the Blood (speed reading has its advantages!). Anyway, I’ll have to be boring and say I like moon elves from D&D the most BUT thanks to your books, I have an idea for a tiefling cleric of Sune for giggles!
My favorite race is the Drow. I love the drow culture and it always keeps you guessing!
I have to say that I’ve always had a soft spot for Dwarves. Honourable, hardy folk who take pride in their work and create grand structures. And you have to love any race that encourages gaming in a terrible Scottish accent. 😉
My “Forest Lord” is a ranger/druid cervitaur living in the depths of Cormanthor. He is NOT human.
Actually, I’d always go for Dwarves above anything else. Mix them with the oh-so-stereotypical Scottish accent and you got me hooked.Yet have to find a German dialect I can use for them… that does not ridicule the sturdy ones 🙂
Eberron’s warforged. I like stories that question humanity, and the warforged represent an interesting group after the ‘last war.’ Made for war, but recently free, what is their place? Do they have souls? What is like with the public thought that your numbers dwindle as your peoples creation is illegal?
All the races in China Mieville’s Bas Lag books, particularly those in Perdido Street Station’s city of New Crobuzon.
So many, but the Khepri stand out: Scarab headed women are unlike most any other race I can think of, with the males not being humanoid at all, but, rather, non-sentient small beetles.
Hobbits from the Lord of the Rings. I can think of no better people than those who can most appreciate food, music, and the company of friends.
I’d have to go with the skaven from warhammer fantasy: cunning, cowardly, greedy, malevolent rat-men, like hairy goblins. “It is a widely held belief that if the Skaven could put aside their in-fighting and distrust of each other, they could potentially take over the world: fortunately their innate paranoia and deceitful, treacherous natures make such an occurrence all but impossible.”
Drow, from reading Starlight and Shadows. But Tieflings are starting to take over after reading Brimstone Angels.
Zerg from StarCraft 2. Have to love the evil race that saves everybody in the end.
It’s hard to pick an absolute favorite since most of the movies, books, and TV shows that I read/watch have non-human characters in important roles. I stopped watching/reading ones that don’t a long time ago. I think if I had to pick one it would be the gumiho (which is often translated as nine-tailed fox, although it really doesn’t appear as a fox). It’s a creature that appears in many Korean legends. I’ve seen several movies and TV shows with gumihos as either protagonists or otherwise central characters. In Korean tradition they were supposed to be villains because they needed to eat human livers to survive. I’ve seen some like that, but I much prefer the stories where the gumihos are the heroes.
The links below are from four TV shows and a movie that have prominent good-aligned gumiho characters in case anyone wants to read more about them.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Girlfriend_Is_a_Nine-Tailed_Fox
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gu_Family_Book
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Painted_Skin:_The_Resurrection
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grudge:_The_Revolt_of_Gumiho
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_Love_(2004_TV_series)
Seems like I’m a little bit late to the party, but my favorite non-human fantasy species is the stately troll. Trolls show up in a surprising amount of fantasy literature, but my favorite series by far, as a child, was John Vornholt’s The Troll King Trilogy, in which they are the subject. I guess a lot of people think of trolls a certain way (for example, maybe, that they have 8d10+40 hit points in the new edition) but I’ve always found them really appealing.
Lycanthropes are my favorite. They are not all bad and add great fun to the game when encountered without silver or magic. When I first started playing 1st edition, my priest was the only one who had silver. A silver holy symbol. We encountered a werebear and we were getting our butts handed to us. The DM allowed me to use my holy symbol and the chain it was on to inflict damage to the werebear. I had to flip a penny for damage. That memory just stuck with me and I have incorporated Lycans into my campaigns ever since.
There are so many good ones…
I’ve been a big fan of phoenixes for a long time, and I really liked how draconians eventually got developed interesting ways in Dragonlance with Kang et al once “The Doom Brigade” came out.
Fairie dragons are also great.
Naturally, I also like creatures that have provided memorable moments in tabletop gaming…
I would have to say Dwarves are my favorite because they are like onions. They have layers. On the surface they are hard and gruff but deep down they are soft and kind.
My favorite would have to be the Drow. So evil and unforgiving – with a few exceptions.
Dwarves, definitely dwarves. The Stout Folk have long been my favorite race in D&D. Drow come in as a close second because I love their politics and house battles.
I have to say elves! What can I say, I’m unoriginal, but it’s all J.R.R. Tolkien’s fault!
My favorite fantasy race right now is without question Gems from Steven universe. the characters are deeper, more interesting, and more real than most stories i have experienced. these videos detail gem physiology
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vj2qtDuO9t8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QeLxZfvtGeU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TO1hmdIwkp0
and here is one of the many great moments of the show https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VZPAO7luuk
My favorite nonhuman fantasy race is the Trollkin from the Iron Kingdoms (Warmachine/Hordes) world. Cousins to actual trolls, they are big and bulky. They live in tribes called kriels, and they wear tartans celebrating this connection. A rare few are born with the power of Fell Calling, and are able to do powerful things with their voices, including signalling for miles, or blasting their enemies. An even more select number are warlocks, and can form bonds will full-blooded trolls, sharing their strength and driving them to war.
Shape-shifting dragons for sure, they have always appealed to my senses. There’s just something so intriguing about them. The Genasi have always been a favorite of mine as well!3
Erin, first of all I’d like to congratulate you for the Brimstone Angels saga. I’ve recently finished The Adversary and I can easily say that your books are some of my favorite Realms novels, and I can’t wait too put my hands on a copy of Fire in the Blood! Well, I guess you’ll know when I do, given that we’re actually friends on Goodreads haha xD
As for my answer to the giveaway, I’ll have to go with the elves. In my early teenage years I came upon The Lord of the Rings book, and since then it has been my all-time favorite book. Tolkien did such an amazing job with them, crafting a beautiful, mysterious, alluring and charming race. Everything about them fascinates me, and their history, culture and traditions in Tolkien’s Legendarium are my favorite stories to read.
Erin, thank you for the Brimstone Angels, for this giveaway and for taking me to a trip to the Realms when I need it! Happy Holidays! Hope you have a great 2016 : )
I think my favorite non-human race has to be tieflings. I guess it’s a little lame because they’re a splinter race from humans in most universes but still. They just have this really cool ability to be anything, to come from nothing and become something regardless of their heritage. Plus when you play a tiefling in D&D you get to play around with that concept like I’m currently writing this tiefling fighter named Eliza, I’m so excited to get to see her grow up and how she deals with those around her seeing her as this like.. complete monster. It helps having books like yours to reference as well, the way you write Farideh and Havi gets me super stoked! I love seeing how tieflings feel about being tieflings, especially seeing a character like Farideh who constantly struggles with a very real demonic pull in her life.
Hey, Erin! Congratulations on the new book AND the new human!
Favorite fantasy race: Redcaps. I love fey & fairie myths, and the redcaps are intriguing because they’re the opposite of what typically comes to mind when people think of fairies. They’re rude and murderous (they soak their hats in the blood of their dead foes? Whoa!), yet they are firmly established in the fey hierarchy, such as it is. I like them so much that I’ve inserted one in my WiP just because he raises the tension a bit — and allows for more snark in the dialogue.
I would have to say my favorite non-human group is vampires. I have always loved stories about vampires, they a rich stories soaked in history and mystery. You can find them in Mortal instruments, to infernal devices, Bram stoker to Sherlock Holmes (I suggest Sherlock Holmes Vs Dracula by Loren D Estleman Amazing read) They also change from story to story, each person adding more and more views to the vampire world. I love this fact, as a writer myself seeing how people take this race and twist, turn and mix it is amazing and most of all fun to read. This race maybe fiction but it once had a place in history, and was truly believed. Believed so deeply that people were scared to leave their houses at night, and staked dead corpses in fear. What did these people see to scare them so badly? i believe that is why i like Vampires, there are stories upon stories, legend upon legends but no one knows where they came from or why the people believed this way and that mystery, can sometimes lead to the greatest stories of them all.
Congratulations on the little human and the big book!
My favorite fantasy race has to be dwarves in the Forgotten Realms, or at least Salvatore’s dwarves. They have such a fantastic culture, close-knit, heroic, pugnacious, brave.
The combination of comedic stubbornness and big heart make them easy to root for. Their ingenuity makes for intriguing twists and battles. They talk funny, ignoring irregular verb constructions and dropping their g’s.
IT’s easy to pass these guys off as “scottish angry dudes” but Faerun’s dwarves are unique and exciting.
Tough question. I’d say for Faerun, definitely the drow. They’re what drew me in to D&D in the first place and Salvatore really brought them to life. For cross-platform species, the sidhe. These are not Disney fairies or Tolkien elves, but a true alien race from their own world/dimension.
Werewolves. I love werewolves. In both classic literature and Forgotten Realms they make a story and campaign intetesting.
I can’t wait for the next novel and congrats on the newest edition to your family.
My favorite race is half elf. I like to have elf abilities, mystery, and of course ears. But still be a little human. And I like not fitting into any culture because as a nerd sometimes you feel that way.
Not first comment on this but reread the entry requirements and saw it said to say your favorite race! Now it makes sense why everyone was talking about that lol My favorite is the Drow, I started reading forgotten realms through R. A. Salvatore in 5th grade and it has remained some of my favorite series ever! I can’t wait for Ashes of the Tyrant to come up keep up the awesome work!!!